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Pierce County

History of CASA

The CASA program was begun in 1977 when Judge David Soukup in King County felt that he was not getting good information in Dependency cases. One case sounded like another. Judge Soukup wanted an independent voice for the child, and came up with the idea of volunteer advocates. Since that time, 933 CASA programs have been established in 49 states and the District of Columbia. National CASA’s offices are in Seattle.

How Did the CASA Movement Begin?

In 1977, a Seattle juvenile court judge concerned about making drastic decisions with insufficient information conceived the idea of citizen volunteers speaking up for the best interests of abused and neglected children in the courtroom. From that first program has grown a network of more than 951 CASA and guardian ad litem programs that are recruiting, training and supporting volunteers in 49 states and the District of Columbia.